Discussions between Lion Air and Bombardier on a possible CSeries deal appear to have slowed down.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of an event in Batam, Lion's president director Rusdi Kirana says the group has not made a decision on whether to add the CSeries to its fleet.
"From our side, [there hasn't been] so much progress," he said.
Kirana would not be drawn into discussions on whether a delay in the CSeries' schedule has affected the progress of the discussions. Neither would he say whether a deal would be made, and if so when.
He however explained that an aircraft such as the CSeries would be ideal for "long thin routes" within Indonesia, such as from Batam to Jayapura.
“We’re still considering whether [we can do it] with the CSeries or other types. Since the market is growing, we need to have direct flights. Indonesia is now hub and spoke, we plan to make it direct,” he adds.
Last October, Kirana said that the airline is aiming to finalise an order for the CS300 by end-2013. He added that any order would be in the double-digit range, with deliveries starting as early as 2016.
Earlier this month, Bombardier announced that it will delay the entry into service of the 110-seat CS100 to the second half of 2015, with the 135-seat CS300 following six months later. The CSeries achieved first flight on 16 September last year, more than nine months behind schedule
Source: Cirium Dashboard
